Check out my latest file on GraphicRiver.net. It’s a Photoshop brush set of 33 grungey, marker elements. The download also includes the source tif files used to create the brushes for editing purposes. Head over to the file’s page for more info.

As promised in my previous post, I’m planning on keeping the best free Cardeo files available moving forward on a new website. That new website is Fileskee.com.

About Fileskee

Fileskee is a file marketplace offering free and premium WordPress themes, web templates, print templates and vectors. As I mentioned, this is the first in a number of new projects that will be launching in the coming months. To kick it off, there are 12 files available on Fileskee. This includes 8 free files and 4 premium files. If you have any feedback or find any bugs, feel free to contact me on Twitter at @fileskee.

Please keep in mind that in the near future, the free files I’ve moved to Fileskee, will no longer be available for download from Cardeo.ca. Thank you!

I just published a post concerning the status of Cardeo.ca on my new blog cybervenom.com. Please take a minute to read the update. If you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment on this post or hit me up on Twitter @mlambert.

Thanks!

Matt

A responsive CSS framework on a baseline grid

Wow! It’s been too long since I’ve published a post. Sorry guys, but I’ve been working on a few new projects. The first of them is the AnonAnon CSS Framework. Does the world need another CSS framework? Probably not, but mine has a few cool features that you won’t find elsewhere. Here’s a list:

• Minimal design and lightweight code
• Responsive for mobile
• Built on a baseline typographic grid
• Includes jQuery UI elements
• 10 column, fluid grid

To learn more or download, please head over to anonanon.org.

8 Cuban Textures

Fresh off my recent vacation to Cuba, I’m happy to release this free Cuban texture pack! The pack includes 8 authentic textures, shot by yours truly. Each jpg texture is super-sized at 2848×2136 pixels. Feel free to use them for any personal or commercial project. No credit is required, but links back to this post are appreciated.

Cuban Texture Pack | Download

50 Killer PSD Styles 01 $4 | Buy Now

Key Features

• 50 PSD styles
• Easy to apply to any PSD shape layer, text, etc…
• Includes 2 bonus example PSD files
• Photoshop CS4 minimum required for editing

50 Killer PSD Styles 01 $4 | Buy Now

Winners

• Lenny G
• Sean F
• James D

Congratulations to all the winners. An account rep from allbusinesscards.com will be in contact with you to claim your prize. Thanks to everyone who entered

Customer service first

The key to keeping clients is to provide top notch customer service. An unfortunate generalization about designers is that we are unreliable. The more unfortunate part is that this is true in a number of cases. Therefore, to set yourself apart, follow through on your promises and deadlines and you will become indispensable to your clients. In fact, the quality of your work is secondary to the level of service you provide. Here’s a few tips on providing excellent customer service:

• Always deliver on time.
• Don’t promise unrealistic timelines, under promise and over deliver.
• Respond to emails and phone calls in a timely manner.
• Be honest, don’t mark up services like printing without telling your client.
• If a job is outside your area of expertise, don’t take it on. Refer your client to someone who can better help them.
• Care about your client and their business, not just your pay check.

How to increase your rates

Your clients average work day doesn’t revolve around what you are working on. They are focusing on running and building their business; design is just one part of that. Therefore, the last thing they want to do is babysit a designer or chase them for work that is late. You need to be dependable, the guy or gal who always delivers on time. Believe me, it might not seem like a big thing to you, but it is one of the best services you can offer a client if you plan to keep them.

Anyhow, getting back to raising your rates, let’s create a sample scenario. Let’s say your hourly rate is $50/hr and you’d like to raise it to $75/hr. Now that is not an insignificant hike, and your clients will definitely notice a difference. Instead of being worried about how they will react on their next quote, get out in front of the problem and let them know that the price of doing business has just changed. When you email or call them, you need to hit a couple of key points:

• Thank them for being a great client.
• Let them know why you are raising your rates.
• Let them know when the new rates will go into effect.

That might not seem like much, but if you have been doing a good job of being indispensable that is all it should take. The reality of the situation is, your client has an established relationship with you. They like you (hopefully), they know what calibre of work you are capable of, and they know you give excellent customer service.

As long as you are providing good work and awesome service, the client is not going to want to go to the trouble of finding a new designer. They don’t want to jump through all the hoops of finding someone new, testing out their quality of work, etc… Bottom line, you’re not selling your work, you’re selling yourself. Therefore, if you’ve been doing a good job of meeting their needs, they will not balk at the price increase.

The exception to the rule

There will be some clients who will have a problem with the rate increase. Much of the time this might be small business clients, who don’t have a huge design budget. In these cases, if it’s a long established client, I would recommend offering them a discount. This technique is a judgement call you need to make. Some of the factors you should consider are:

• Are they a good client?
• Do they pay on time?
• Are they easy to work with?
• Do they provide you with a regular stream of business?

If you answered yes to one or more of those questions, I would recommend offering them a discount. Good clients can be as hard to find as good designers. Reward your good clients by offering them a compromise. In this case everyone wins because you still get to increase your rates and you make the client happy by showing that you care enough to be flexible so you can continue doing business. As far as how much of a discount to offer, I’d recommend 10-25% off.

Well that’s it. I hope this post has been helpful for all the freelance monkeys out there. If you have any questions, or would like to share some techniques that have worked for you in the past, please leave a comment below.

Cardeo Minimal HTML Email Template

An minimal email template inspired by swiss graphic design. The template comes in 10 different colors, and includes a PSD file for each version. So that’s 10 PSD files, and 10 HTML files, with supporting images. You can preview the template below. Click the add to cart button to purchase it for $2.

Cardeo Minimal HTML Email Template Preview | $2
 

Key Features

• 10 colors
• 10 HTML templates
• 10 layered PSD templates
• All major email clients supported
• Built using the Golden Ratio
• Optimal width for all email clients (600 pixels)
• Easily Customizable
• Users Helvetica System Font, Arial would also work
• Photoshop CS4 minimum required for editing PSD files
• Please leave a comment for questions or support

Colors

Yellow, Red, Blue, Black, Grey, Green, Pink, Purple, Navy, Orange

Compatibilty

Template has been tested in: Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoo Mail, AOL mail, Outlook, Mac Mail, and Sparrow for Mac.

Credits

Facebook, Twitter, and RSS icons by komodomedia.com.

If you’re looking for more minimal files, please check out my portfolio on GraphicRiver.net

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.5 Canada License. To view a copy of this license, visit creativecommons.org or send a letter to Creative Commons, 171 Second Street, Suite 300, San Francisco, California, 94105, USA.

Freelance Confidential from $24 | Buy Now

What’s included?

You’re talented, you’re reliable, you’re professional. What’s holding your business back from where you want to be? In Freelance Confidential, FreelanceSwitch editor Amanda Hackwith uncovers the facts and myths about freelancing and reveals what freelancers at any stage of business need to know:

• How much do others charge?
• Where do you find new clients?
• How do you promote your work?

Drawing on survey statistics from over 3,200 participants and insights from 10 notable experts, including Envato’s Collis Ta’eed and Freelancers Academy’s Ed Gandia, Amanda Hackwith asks frank questions and gets the answers that will help your freelance business grow. Whether you’re a successful freelancer who’s reached a plateau or one who’s just starting out, learn the truths to success in Freelance Confidential.

Freelance Confidential from $24 | Buy Now